Purin chan who had cancer on her back and tumor on her abdomen Pururu (Cheeky) chan had periapical abscess, lung abscess and dissolved jawbone 1/2/25 There are folks who strongly believe in not interfering with life of wild animals because they believe interference may result in disruption in ecosystem. These people do not feed wild life and do not rescue wild animals. That is the idea of ‘let the nature be nature’. However, most people who come to Ohkunoshima don’t fit in this category. They provide water and food, which clearly indicates they deeply care about them. These rabbits are offspring of house rabbits dumped many years ago and they often get sick/injured due to accidents by humans, predators and environment of the island. Just like other animals in the wild, sick/injured ones get ousted from their groups and sometimes result in death. It’s such a shame most people give up the idea of saving these rabbits thinking they belong to the island. I really hope rabbits who are in desperate need will be rescued as they are not true wild rabbits who are better equipped to live in the wild. The Ministry of Environment gave “go ahead” for medical treatment as an exception for “no rabbits off the island” and Ran chan and other rabbits were rescued. All of them had more serious conditions and it was too late to save Purin and Pururu(Cheeky). But there are rabbits who made full recovery and living happily today. Your donation with best hope for their welfare made it possible to provide advanced medical care. Please give rabbits who are suffering a second chance in life.

Visi chan getting emergency care Visi chan suffering from unknown condition on the island 9/27/24 My older brother was a doctor. While on duty, he contracted COVID-19 through an in-hospital infection, developed pulmonary fibrosis, and passed away after a year-long battle with the illness. This disease is incurable, and the prognosis for survival is extremely short. Even with the aid of machines to boost his oxygen levels, he told me—while he was still able to speak—that he constantly felt as if he were drowning; the agony was so intense that he could think of nothing else but the struggle to breathe. He had faced the deaths of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of patients throughout his career and surely believed he understood their suffering well enough; yet, it seems that the anguish he experienced when he found himself in their shoes was an unbearable torment he truly grasped for the very first time. He wished to be euthanized, but his request was denied; he eventually became bedridden and incontinent, and—feeling stripped of his human dignity—he continued to suffer until the very end, when he finally passed away. In early June, I discovered a rabbit in front of the visitor center, writhing in convulsions. Its condition deteriorated rapidly before my eyes; it could neither eat nor drink, and it appeared to be on the verge of death—it seemed it would not last much longer. I placed it in a box and set it aside next to the visitor center, shielded from public view. However, the next day—more than 27 hours after I had first found it—it was still alive. It was clearly suffering, and feeling that I could not simply leave it there, my husband and I boarded a Shinkansen bullet train to take it to an animal hospital that was open on a Sunday. During the train ride, its condition worsened further; maggots began to emerge from its face, and I had to use my fingers to pick them off to prevent them from getting into its eyes. I got the distinct impression that the veterinarian treated us somewhat coldly, perhaps because the patient in question was a rabbit from Okunoshima Island. The animal was already in a critical, near-death state; the hospital refused to admit it for inpatient care, and it received only very basic, minimal treatment. Yet, the rabbit clung to life. I asked the vet, "If there is no hope for recovery, could you please perform euthanasia?" The vet replied, "The fact that you brought it all the way here suggests that you want to do everything possible to save it. If you simply wanted to have it euthanized, wouldn't it have been better to just leave it back on the island?" At that moment, a horrific image flashed through my mind: the rabbit—still alive, despite being on the brink of death—being devoured by crows or wild boars. I felt, with absolute certainty, that that would have been the far more cruel fate. I felt it was inhumane. In the end, the rabbit died several hours later, having suffered throughout. For some reason, I found myself overcome by a sensation that the rabbit’s plight was eerily mirroring that of my brother. It was at that moment that I realized just how vast the difference is between the situation in the United States—where relieving an animal of its suffering when recovery is hopeless is recognized as a humane act—and the situation in Japan.

a rabbit with leg injury 9/12/24 Many tourists visit Ohkunoshima (rabbit island) because of rabbits. The number of visitors often exceed the number of rabbits on weekends and holidays. As a result, many rabbits suffer from injuries and sickness but no place to treat these rabbits on the island. After Ranpu chan(rabbit with huge tumor on the ear) was rescued from island, we’d like to continue to save rabbits that need help. Currently, rabbits are not allowed to come back to island after medical treatment and that is preventing efforts to save them. Please a DM to @her.name.is.mercedes on Instagram. if you’re interested in adopting Ohkunoshima rabbits. Please feel free to spread the word. Thank you.

baby rabbit with GI stasis 6/14/24 The day will eventually come when there are no longer any rabbits left on Okunoshima. This will not be due to wild boars, crows, hawks or rats. It will be because of humans. Humans are the root cause. Of course, these animals do prey on the rabbits. However, the reason they are able to prey on them is that humans feed the rabbits—especially the young ones—excessive amounts of raw vegetables; this causes gas to build up in their stomachs, leaving them immobilized by pain, and as a result, their natural predators can catch them with ease. There are also instances where humans accidentally step on the rabbits—particularly children—causing fractures that render the rabbits unable to move. Furthermore, the rabbits on the island are afflicted with a wide variety of infectious diseases. Their average lifespan is a mere one year—two years at most. The young rabbits are easily picked off by predators, while the adults succumb to illness. This is the reason why the rabbit population is plummeting. To halt this decline, it is crucial that the young rabbits are able to grow up safely. Yet, why do people continue to bring large quantities of cabbage and carrots to feed to the young rabbits? It will inevitably lead to their deaths. Please stop doing this. Additionally, please supervise your children to ensure they do not run around blindly. If you do not, the day will surely come when the rabbits vanish from this island forever. (The rabbit pictured beneath the first signboard is the same young rabbit shown in the second photo. Its abdomen is already distended, and it is unlikely to survive through the weekend.)

Matsuzaka saying goodbye to his friend Matsuzaka fathered many rabbits on the island 9/25/23 It has been 10 years since we started to come to Okunoshma. I still can not forget how excited I was to see many rabbits run up to me during our first visit to this island. I just could not realize how things could deteriorate this bad in 10 years. People poking rabbit nests with tree branches. People climbing walls where rabbit nests are and destroying them potentially killing babies. People reaching hands into rabbit nests hoping to catch them. When rabbits don’t eat the food shoved at their nose, people get frustrated and start hitting and kicking them. People chase rabbits and end up stepping on them. Vast majority are kids doing these things while their parents ignore their behaviors. Parents are okay with kids actions as long as they have a good time. There’s no control on the island to protect rabbits. No park rangers or people with authority. The island has only volunteers like us who tell people not to mistreat rabbits and get yelled back if we say anything. Matsuzaka rabbit did not have to die. He was chased and cornered by kids into the bushes where he lived, where he got stepped on and his hips were broken. Matsuzaka was 5 years old, a very popular rabbit but not as agile as he used to be and probably could not escape this persistent chase by kids. Michael witnessed multiple chases on Matsuzaka and other rabbits and told people to stop. We have come to the island many times over the years to help sick and injured rabbits. We explained to people what to do and not to do many times. Hoping that with education, people will change but nothing changed. People still chase rabbits and over feed them and rabbits end up being injured, sick and ultimately die. Even we could save one rabbit, three still died. We realized that our efforts had no impact. As Michael said, it's like trying to put out a fire in a high-rise building with a short household hose. While many companies make profits off the rabbits, rabbits are paying with their lives. Not one yen goes to the rabbits or their care. Injured or sick rabbits as a result of human cruelty are not rescued or treated. They simply end up dying within days if not overnight. The only thing that is protected are businesses who exploites rabbits. Okunoshima became an island of animal abuse. This should never be tolerated. I hear the rabbits voices screaming every day "Protect Me, Help Me!”

Rabbit dying of heat stroke on Ohkunoshima 9/9/23 This was one of the rabbits who suffered from heat stroke and passed away less than 4 hours after she was found. These rabbits will face abnormally hot summer this year, something they never experienced before. Many will most likely to die. If you want to help them, please visit the island and help to provide water for them. If you see a rabbit struggling from heat stroke, place cold towel inside ear and/or over their body. Placing cold drink from vending machine by their bodies helps as well. Thank you for your cooperation and helping save these rabbits.

Zakkuri had deep gash in his side of his left body being injured, Zakkuri hid from other rabbits September, 2022 ​A rabbit, we named Zakkuri, was severely injured (lower part of his body had deep gash). He no longer could eat with other rabbits and was hiding behind unused building. He was already skinny when he was found and I remember going to where he was hiding every few hours to give him food, water & vitamin. Even after we had to leave the island, other volunteers kept watching over him and took care of him. He got to live close to 4 months after devastating injury. At the end, he developed abscess around his butt area and went missing one day. If this were today, I bet we could take him to a vet for treatment. Zakkuri, you will always be remembered.